The Dragon's Horns
by KILBOFRAGGINS
Summary: Set some time after the events of the original trilogy, Spyro encounters a new but familiar threat and deals with conflicts previously unknown to him. I've written this for fun as a complete amateur, but hope you enjoy nonetheless.
1. From The Ashes

Chapter 1 : From The Ashes

The ancient arena even though older than Lazlo could imagine, was still just as unbearably hot as it was in its prime. The bubbling lava moat surrounding the scorched and cracked central platform heated the stone to the touch. The sun never seemed to shine here, or at least if it did it was barely noticeable through the thick layers of smoke and embers consistently rising from the crater the arena was built into, as if the souls of those fallen in the arena were making a break for the heavens.

Lazlo wasn't sure where it was, or rather they were. He'd heard tell of a powerful being felled in battle against a draconid warrior here in this very pit, and a grizzly battle it was, according to legend. Hopefully there was enough of it left to work with, too many years of research and personal toil would have been wasted otherwise.

Lazlo approached the sizzling and sinister lava stream, took several deep breaths, and began to chant with arms outstretched.

"Tormented soul, I summon thee to reap vengeance on those who doomed you to this fate, from the ashes you will rise anew, from your slumber you will wake, and emerge MY CHAMPION!"

Then followed the most painful and uncomfortable few minutes of lazlos life, holding his hands out in connection with the life force of the being under the lava, he struggled and writhed. Every muscle in his body seemed to tense, so much so he almost gave up with the pain.

"No!" Lazlo cried defiantly, his resolve unwavering.

"You will not escape me! YOU. ARE. MINE!" Sweating profusely from the effort more than the heat of the being's grave, Lazlo clenched his fists so hard his long grubby nails cut deep into the palms of his hands, his teeth gritted with such force they started to crack. He brought his fists slowly towards his chest, the ritual was almost over, all that was left was to bind the being's soul to his will, and his will if his studies were correct, was concentrated in his heart which had already been well blackened by his past deeds. One more dark ritual would feel like a drop in the ocean, any damage that could be done had already been wrought. A few more vital moments in the final position and a flash of darkness infused energy erupted from Lazlos torso, with such force it threw him clumsily back several feet and knocked the wind clear from his lungs.

Silence. Other than the sound of rasping breath nothing was to be heard. But there was plenty to feel, dread hung in the air like a thick and overpowering perfume, tension levels nightmare worthy. Before he had any more time to ponder the sudden eerie atmosphere, an agonizing groan filled the crater, followed by the smacking sound of a clawed hand finding purchase on the edge of the platform from the flowing lava. Then rose what could just about pass for a head, the face charred and stricken with agony staring straight into Lazlos big brown eyes.

"Mmmasterrr" wailed the corpse, terrified of its sudden rebirth.

"Aha! Hahahahaaaa! Yes! I did it, I actually did it!" Lazlo yelled, completely unfazed by the grotesque and terrifying figure, far more interested in his clear success than the poor creature's well being.

He watched in awe as the monster rose from its not so final resting place, it must have stood at least eight feet tall had it actually stood up straight rather than hunching so low and dragging it's boney hands across the stone floor, tearing what was left of the flesh on its knuckles off and leaving a bloody trail. The monster didn't seem to mind. It bore resemblance to a dinosaur, with hints of blue and yellow scales amidst the severe burns and wounds, which ones were battle inflicted and which were the result of years in the grave, it was hard to tell.

"Listen to me closely" murmured Lazlo " Your name is The Sorceress, and you will do as I say" The creature was fixated by Lazlos new found authority, and listened with eyes barley open and mouth gaping, bearing two or three remaining teeth black with blood.

"Your enemy is but one purple dragon, calls himself Spyro. He has wronged us both and will pay dearly in blood, loss, and whatever else we can deal him"

The monsters head nodded slowly in response and agreement, now clutching it's stomach with one hand and moaning.

"Spy... Spyro" the creature whined in a voice almost unlike it's own.

""Yes yes your mortal enemy and my future wall ornament provided his corpse doesn't get too mangled" Lazlo snapped impatiently, now eager to proceed.

"We'll soon get you on your feet, you'll be back to your old self. No! You'll be better, your frame is mine to mould, I shall make you stronger than you- are you even listening to me?"

Lazlo shouted, The Sorceress, now slumped on the floor like a sad puppy, was murmuring to herself.

"Biaanncaaa" she seemed to be weeping, though her tear ducts weren't what they once where.

"Where is she? Where is- aaahhhhh!"

She cradled her head with both hands, and began to shake uncontrollably, as if the void was trying to claim her back. Lazlo pinched the bridge of his nose, his eyes closed, and let out an unsympathetic sigh.

"Yes of course, you're trying to remember aren't you? I wouldn't bother, the dead tend to have trouble recalling things, and you certainly don't want to remember your failure. It'll only bring you more pain, and I don't just mean physical"

The Sorceress stood up slowly, assuming the hunched position again, all the while gawping at Lazlo in disbelief.

"I'm... Dead?" She asked, ready have another go at crying, she couldn't work why she couldn't cry, which made her want to cry even more.

"Well, yes, I mean no! Not really, you're just... Waking up?" Lazlo grimaced, his pathetic attempt at reassuring the grieving monstrosity stood before him clearly had no effect.

"Oh what does it matter, dead or alive you're right here in front of me, with a purpose and breath in your lungs. That's more than can be said for many others that have crossed my path" Lazlo exclaimed with his hands on his hips, somehow looking down on the Sorceress despite the fact she was more than twice his size.

"So, you want to wallow in self pity in this god forsaken pit? Or do you want to come with me and get fixed up and on a new path? A path you and I will pave with purple scales" The Sorceress said nothing, she was hard to read in this horrific undead form, but Lazlo knew the answer to his question.

"That's what I thought, come Sorceress, we've work to do"

Leading the creature away, he dusted himself down and readjusted his purple jewel necklace. He rubbed the stump on his head in remembrance, his horn was rather spectacular once upon a time. Perhaps now it will be again.


	2. Tea and Biscuits

Chapter 2: Tea and Biscuits

Bird song upon the moment of arrival, almost ceaseless but still calming. A light breeze bringing the trees to life, branches waving in beautiful synchronization, the sound of leaves rustling gently. The morning dew providing a fresh feeling to the grass, bees buzzing contently from flower to flower and the still pond in front of the shimmering entrance portal glistening in the orangy sunlight.

A bliss known only to the Autumn Plains, a realm Spyro had sorely missed. Even just a week away from this haven felt like an eternity to him.

He passed through the entrance portal, no matter how many times he used it he never got used to the feeling, like he'd left something behind on the other side. Greeting him almost immediately and with evident delight was Elora, a loveable young red faun, her fur matching beautifully with their surroundings, wearing her signature green leaf dress, the colour of which never seemed fade.

"Spyro! You made it, and in good time" said Elora gleefully whilst throwing her arms around the dragon and hugging him briefly but tightly, she'd been looking forward to this visit since his last one.

"It's good to see you Elora, I trust you and the old man are keeping well?" Spyro casually enquired.

Elora nodded happily, flashing a perfect smile.

"Indeed, the professor is busy in his lab as usual, meanwhile I've been tending to the gardens both here and in summer forest. That lousy cheetah was supposed be coming to lend me a hand, but I haven't seen him" sighed Elora, her exhaustion beginning to show now that her initial greeting had run its course.

"How dare he have a family and potentially be too busy to help me" she said sarcastically with a silly grin, Elora was of course delighted that Hunter had the happiness he deserved, but it didn't stop the lack of help from being irritating.

"If you want my help, just ask so I can say no already" Spyro laughed, eagerly awaiting the faun's aggravated reply

"Oh? And what's stopping you exactly?" Elora retorted.

"Well I mean, my lack of opposable thumbs for one" Spyro held up his front leg and waved it around, gesturing that he indeed lacked the vital appendage.

"I envy you" said Elora "If I didn't have thumbs I wouldn't be stuck with half the tiresome jobs around here, might even get time to paint something on a beautiful summers eve" she gazed at the garden she'd spent so much time on and smiled at the thought.

"How would you paint without thumbs?" Spyro smirked, picturing her fumbling around a canvas.

"Shut up" Elora's smile didn't waver "Why don't we see what the professor is up to?"

Spyro nodded in approval, the two of them started strolling towards the main castle, which stood just as stern and proud as it had always done, even under Ripto's rule.

If Spyro was a couple years older and had reached the stage in his growth where he'd be standing on two legs like his elders, Elora might have reached for his hand as they walked.

The approach to the professor's laboratory was strangely uncomfortable, from behind the large wooden doors could be heard clattering and frantic shouting, accompanied by a terrible whirring sound. The professor was known to talk to himself while he worked, but his tone was not one he'd ever take with himself, anger and frustration fuelled remarks flowed from behind the oak doors but with them a level of fear akin to that of a bird being harassed by a cruel cat. Judging by the professor's curses, the whirring shouldn't have been happening. Before Spyro and Elora could make any guesses an explosion shook the castle, the red flash from under the doors was sinister indeed.

The two of them barrelled into room to find the old mole flat on his face, arms and legs spread apart in a comical starfish position, his glasses lay cracked beside him along with a great many vials, beakers, and other apparatus.

"Professor!! Are you ok? Say something!" Cried Elora, throwing herself on the floor next to him. The silence between Elora's plea and the professor's response was but a few seconds, but felt dreadfully long.

"I'm... fine, thank you dear, just a.. miscalculation" mumbled the professor, his voice muffled by the stone floor his face was still pressed against.

"Honestly I blame that blasted radar, it's been beeping at me for hours and distracting me awfully" he stood up slowly, clutching his back, his joints cracking.

Satisfied that the professor was alive enough, Spyro wandered over to the radar that was still beeping very frequently.

"You mean this radar?" He asked "does it normally have a huge red dot just here with a skull next to it? Or is it just an early Halloween decoration?" Spyro chuckled to himself, though still rather unsettled by the ominous symbol, finding himself increasingly fixated.

Beep, beep, beep. The radar continued to warn them of something, something close by and getting closer by the second.

The professor hobbled over to the constantly beeping console, squinted his eyes in an attempt to focus on the display. He concentrated for a few moments, before his expression turned from professional curiosity to fear instilled realisation.

"Oh dear, oh my this... this isn't good, urm.. how do I put this? We need to leave" he shuddered.

"What? Why? Professor what IS that symbol? Why have you gone so pale?" Elora questioned in quick succession.

"That symbol means someone's here, and they're not coming for tea and biscuits. Whoever they are, they're dangerous, hence the skull mark" explained the professor.

"Say no more" interrupted Spyro "Elora, take the professor and head to the dragon realms, I'm going to welcome our guest, and not with tea and biscuits" he winked at the professor, his chippy confidence harked back to the days he first discovered Avalar, though he was much older and stronger now.

"Absolutely not!" Elora snapped "I'll not abandon my home so rashly, it's going to be tea for three!" Her voice was shaky, indecisive of whether to be angry or scared.

"Elora please, I don't know the way to the dragon realms, you need to get me there safe so I can start working on a way to beat whoever that is" the professor lied, he shot Spyro a quick glance and a subtle nod. Spyro knew he was trying to keep her from harm, and lucky for both of them she reluctantly agreed.

"Fine" Elora had her fists clenched hanging by her sides, stiff as a board with all the sudden stress.

"Spyro please just... Be careful, I can't imagine Avalar without your visits" her heart wrenched at the thought of her purple dragon coming to harm.

"I will, I promise. When we get back here I'll help you with that gardening" Spyro said sincerely, he wasn't normally the soppy type, but he cared deeply for Elora, now seemed like the perfect opportunity to show it. "I'll meet you in the Artisans world, my home. Now go, make haste! The longer we dilly dally the closer they get" said Spyro indicating the the skull on the radar.

He rushed out of the laboratory in search of his new foe, not looking back for fear of a seconds hesitation.

Having reached the spot where the radar last showed the threat, Spyro's gaze flashed from point to point desperately looking for signs of danger. A gloom seemed to have come over the garden, the flowers began to wilt slowly, Spyro could almost feel them suffering. The sky darkened unnaturally, it was only just mid morning. He found the danger, or rather the danger found him.

"Hello dragon" a familiar voice said from a source as yet unknown to Spyro and unsettlingly intimate. "It's been some time. Tea and biscuits was it?"


End file.
